For a moment, he seems lost in concentration. “Let’s get you through dinner tomorrow night. But suffice it to say it’s wonderful to actually see her genuinely smile for the first time since I’ve known her.”
That makes me puff up, and he notices. “Will you be spending more time in Tucson, then?” he asks.
I nod. “Can you arrange a meeting with Garrett Green?”
“To discuss the casino?”
“Yes. I’ll work on that. Might take a few days to arrange. I’m not sure if he’s in town right now or not.”
“Understood. She said she knows him and is friends with his mate?”
“Yes. It’s been a very helpful arrangement.” He grins. I take it there are now no sunrises in your immediate future?”
I’m not too proud to admit it. “Yes, you were right. Yes, I have found a reason to stick around. Yes, I am infatuated with her. Happy?”
He chuckles. “Well, I’m notunhappy.”
I follow him out to the main play space, and he orders me a large glass of a “special house blend.”
Before I even taste it, I know Blue’s blood is mixed in with it. Now that I know what she smells like in person, I realize her taste is something completely different than anything I’ve ever experienced. It brightens and sharpens the other flavors like an enhancer.
I’m tempted to head upstairs and sit at the bar and watch her for what’s left of the night, but Lucius has other ideas. “Can I perhaps interest you in one of our household humans for the night?”
Before meeting Blue in person—or tasting her—I might have been tempted.
Now?
The thought of touching someone other than her leaves me cold.
Colder. “That’s very kind of you, but—”
“Ah.” His brows lift. “Youareobsessed with her now, aren’t you?”
Why deny it? “It would seem so.”
Paternally, his hand grips my shoulder. “Take your time with her,” he whispers. “Don’t rush. You are the only one, besides myself and Selene, I would ever trust her with.”
His words ring in my ears long after he’s left to make rounds of the other guests. It’s close to four a.m. when I finally emerge from the basement to leave, and I see that the nightclub is nearly deserted.
No Blue.
Theophilus, one of Lucius’ men, walks over as I stand there feeling more than a little forlorn. “Can I help you, sir?”
“Blue’s left already?”
From his slight scowl, I know she’s still here. “She’s not available, I’m sorry. Did you need us to call a car for you?”
I feel in my pocket for the key fob. “No, I have a rental.”
“Ah.”
He subtly shifts position, so he’s standing between me and a straight line toward the back hallway I know leads to the stairwell upstairs.
A locked stairwell.
I meet his gaze. “Promise me she’ll be safe getting to her car.”
“She never leaves before dawn, and she has a reserved staff spot near the back door, sir. She’s safe.” When I don’t move, he adds, “I’m the general manager. She’s under Lucius’ personal protection. Believe me, she’s safe.”
